“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 3 Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.” (Jn 15:1-4 ESV)
Jesus envisions us as grapes on a vine. The same imagery is used throughout the Old Testament to describe the people of God: (Ps. 80:8–19; Isa. 5:1–8; Jer. 2:21; 6:8–9; Ezek. 17:6–8; 19:10–14; Hos. 10:1–2). It was such important imagery that a great golden grapevine hung over the entrance to the Temple in Jerusalem.
The imagery becomes especially meaningful as Jesus gathers his disciples at Passover and takes a cup of wine, made from grapes, and says, “ And he said to them, ‘This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many.’” (Mk. 14:24 ESV) Jesus is the grape pressed into wine now poured out for many.
This last image is important. Grapes are grown and made into wine. In his book Crushed T. D. Jakes notes that this vital truth helps in times of hardship. There is a difference, he writes, between fruit-growing and wine-making. Most of us are comfortable with the notion of fruit-growing. Sure, there may be some pruning involved, so that we can be all the more fruitful. But, we can handle that, we think.
This, however, is ultimately short-sighted. Jesus’ imagery in John 15 is not merely about fruit-growing. It is about wine-making. Grapes are grown so they may be turned into wine. And grapes only become wine through a very painful process. They must be crushed:
“In the midst of our painful crushing, we realize that the blessing found in the production of fruit in our lives was never God’s end goal. Our latest crop of fruit was merely part of an ongoing, greater process. The Master Vintner knows there’s something much more worthwhile beyond the production of fruit–the potency of its juice fermented into wine … what if you shifted your paradigm to winemaking instead of fruit growing? Could it be possible that your current predicament is the winepress God uses to transform your grapes into His wine? Could being crushed be a necessary part of the process to fulfill God’s plan for your life?” (12-13)
This does not mean that God brought a specific hardship into your life to crush you. That would make God malevolent and mean. But it may mean that God is now able to use your present pain, regardless of how it came to be, as a winepress. It could be that this current crushing you are experiencing is something God can use for his long-range life-goal of making you into fine wine.
As you continue to face this frustrating and distressing season of life, consider changing your paradigm. Consider that the end goal is not just the growing of fruit in your life, but the making of wine from your life.
